The present invention relates generally to support systems used to attach devices across a base section of trunking, from one of two longitudinal walls of the trunking to the other, whether those walls are lateral flanges of the trunking base section or internal partition walls that the trunking may include to subdivide its interior volume into two or more compartments. The invention relates more particularly to the situation in which the devices are electrical devices, for example socket outlets.
The present invention relates in particular to a support for a device to be attached to the base section of trunking, which base section has rims facing towards each other, where the support is of the type including two crossmembers which are adapted to be interengaged with said rims by interengagement means and each of which is equipped with means for fixing said device.
By separating the crossmembers from each other, it is advantageously possible to match the assembly to any distance between fixing centers parallel to the length of the trunking base section, and therefore parallel to the length of the cover section.
In some systems known in the art it is also possible, at least to some degree, to match the length of the crossmembers to the distance in the widthwise direction between the two longitudinal walls concerned of the trunking base section, and therefore the width of the cover section.
To this end, in the aforementioned systems known in the art, each crossmember has a central part and one or more portions at its ends adapted to be cut off, and the end parts include interengagement means for interengaging the assembly as a whole with the longitudinal walls concerned of the trunking base section to be equipped, and are attached to the ends of the central part, nesting fashion, in the manner of terminations.
To adapt a crossmember to the required width, all that is required is therefore to eliminate one or more of the portions of the central part of the crossmember which are adapted to be cut off.
This has various disadvantages, however, which relate essentially to the fact that there is inevitably a dependent relationship between, on the one hand, adapting each crossmember to the width of the cover section and, on the other hand, the final position of the fixing means equipping each crossmember which, when the length of each crossmember is modified, can end up off-center relative to a position initially provided on the longitudinal axis of symmetry of said trunking.
In some cases, for a given crossmember length, it is also necessary to modify the position of the fixing means equipping a crossmember to allow an off-center position of the device to be fixed, for example if the device is fastened to an embellisher plate relative to which it is off-center, or for example in the situation where the device has a large overall volume at the rear such that when it is mounted on said support in the trunking it bears against an inside part of the trunking, as a result of which the fixing means are off-center relative to a position initially provided on the longitudinal axis of symmetry of said trunking.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,957,414 discloses a support for a device to be attached to the base section of trunking which has rims facing towards each other, which support has two crossmembers adapted to interengage with said rims and each of which is equipped with means for fixing said device whose position along the crossmember can be adjusted by means of a complex system of co-operating detents.
Although a system of the above kind is entirely satisfactory when it is a question of continuous or substantially continuous adjustment of the position of the fixing means equipping the crossmembers over a relatively large portion of the length of the crossmembers, it adds to the cost and complexity of manufacture and use of the device support, which cannot be justified if the range of adjustment of said fixing means is particularly small, in order to allow a slightly off-center position of said fixing means relative to an intended original position.
Accordingly, compared to the aforementioned prior art, the present invention proposes a new disposition of the crossmembers of a device support provided with fixing means whose position can be adjusted to match those of device fixing means which are slightly off-center relative to an intended original position along said crossmembers, and which is simple to manufacture at low cost.
The invention relates more particularly to a device support of the type defined in the introduction in which the fixing means are attached to each crossmember by a flexible connection catering for a slightly offset position of the fixing means in the general direction of the crossmember relative to a stable original position when fixing the device to the support.
In accordance with the invention, the flexible connection attaching the fixing means to each crossmember advantageously cater for a slightly off-center position of the fixing means, enabling a support of given length, mounted on the trunking, to receive different devices, for example devices constituting a series, whose overall sizes are different, mounting of which can entail slightly offsetting their fixing means relative to an intended original position.
Other non-limiting and advantageous features of the device support according to the invention are stated hereinafter.
The offset position of the fixing means is achieved by pivoting the flexible connection in the plane of said crossmember.
The fixing means equipping a crossmember are part of a stud fastened to the flexible connection, which stud can carry abutments on respective opposite sides of said flexible connection adapted to bear against a portion of each crossmember to limit the travel of said fixing means.
Each stud is formed in one piece with the associated flexible connection, and each flexible connection consists of a flexible tongue perpendicular to the general direction of a crossmember, which flexible tongue can be molded in one piece with each crossmember from a plastics material.
The support has four sides in the general form of a frame, two of which are longitudinal sides having on their outside edge groove means adapted for interengaging them with the rims of the base section of the trunking to be equipped and two transverse sides formed by said crossmembers, said sides defining internally a central opening for fitting at least one device and being divided into at least two parts hinged together by a hinge, forming a single part so that they can be at least locally discontinuous to provide lateral access to the central opening.
In one embodiment of the invention, the longitudinal sides include longitudinal members provided with at least one portion which can be cut off to form an orifice for electrical power supply cables of a device to pass through.